The Premiere
by VikkiHeat
Summary: Kate/Rick. The first Nikki Heat novel has finally been turned into a movie, and Castle asks Kate to attend the premiere with him. 3 parter.
1. Part 1

**The Premiere**

_Summary: Kate/Rick. The first Nikki Heat novel has finally been turned into a movie, and Castle asks Kate to attend the premiere with him. 2 parter._

_Not supposed to be taken seriously, the same way the show isn't. Hope you enjoy, and please leave a review on your way out. Next part coming soon._

* * *

**Part 1:**

"Angelina Jolie is playing the role of Nikki Heat, oh come on Castle, you expect me to fall for that?" Kate Beckett asked one morning, as Castle brought along her second cappuccino of the day and a flyer. The flyer was a smaller representation of what the promotional posters for 'Heat Wave' would look like.

"There's nothing to fall for," Castle replied, sitting in the chair opposite Kate's desk. "It arrived in the mail from my publisher this morning."

"I haven't heard of the actor who's playing you though." Kate frowned, looking from up from the flyer at Castle and back again. "He's quite a good likeness." She conceded.

"His name's Nathan Fillion, he's been in a few television shows." Castle took the flyer from Kate's hand and studied it. "Not as ruggedly handsome as yours truly though."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Of course not Castle, that would be impossible."

Castle grinned back at her. "So, you are coming to the premiere, it would only be right. I mean, without you there might not be a Nikki Heat at all."

Kate's detective instincts were beginning to kick in now. "Did you just pay me a compliment, Castle?" There had to be more to this than Castle was letting on, Kate was sure of that.

"You noticed." Castle grinned, the smile lighting up his features so that he resembled a boy more than a nearly forty year old man. As much as she hated to admit it to herself, let alone to him, Kate enjoyed Castle's juvenility. With a job like her's Kate needed the moments of levity that being paired with Castle brought her. Still she was determined to get at whatever he seemed to hiding from her.

"Okay, okay." He held his hands up in surrender. "I might have told my publisher that you'd definitely be there." He paused, bracing himself for Kate's reaction to what came next. "I might also have said you'd be happy to sign autographs on the red carpet."

"What!" Kate demanded, setting her cappuccino down so forcefully on its saucer that some of the coffee spilled over the edge of the cup. "Castle, you know I hate all of that stuff. Having you tag along to crime scenes is one thing, but being paraded around in front of all your number one fans was not what I signed up for."

"Please?" He smiled sweetly, but Kate looked away. Damn it, if he asked her nicely enough she'd do anything for him, she just wished he hadn't sprung this on her out of the blue.

She reached out and took the flyer back from him, a little more roughly than she had intended. "Fine," She sighed, but she was determined to use this as leverage over Castle for as long as she possibly could.

* * *

"Did you manage to get Detective Beckett to agree to come to the premiere?" Alexis Castle asked when her father returned from the precinct later that same day.

"Of course I did." He grinned, opening the fridge and taking out a bottle of water. "Wait, you thought she'd say no? How could anyone resist my charm?"

While her father's back was turn, Alexis rolled her eyes.

"Detective Beckett isn't like the other women you..." She paused, searching her brain for the appropriate term, coming up empty. "Know." She finished somewhat lamely, unable to verbalise what Castle apparently could not see for himself.

"That's true..." Castle replied, looking oddly pensive as if something was just occurring to him. The moment was shattered by Martha's dramatic entrance.

"Alexis! I picked up your dress today!" She called, almost completely ensconced by the two dress bags she was carrying.

Abandoning what could have been a very revealing conversation with her father, Alexis scrambled up from the kitchen table and went to greet her mother. Whatever had slowly been occurring to Castle was pushed back into the recesses of his mind as he went to greet his mother and to spend the rest of the evening watching his mother parade around the house in a selection of gowns.

While Beckett soaked in the tub in her newly renovated apartment, she couldn't help but think about the 'Heat Wave' premiere. As much as she tried to deny it, she was touched that Castle had invited her, if you could really call the exchange between them that morning an invitation. Classically a jeans, shirt and boots kind of woman, Kate still couldn't help wondering if Castle would pick out a dress for her the way he had when the first Nikki Heat novel had been released.

* * *

Kate sipped from a glass of red wine, thinking back on how far her working relationship with Richard Castle had progressed since that time. In the beginning he was simply an egotistical pain in the ass, but the more time Kate spent with him and the more perilous situations they were thrown into, she came to realise that there was much more to the bestselling mystery author than she had first thought. Especially recently, as she had been targeted personally as well as professionally. She had never expected to be able to rely on Castle completely but he had really come through for her in a heroic way.

While part of her was still slightly annoyed at the underhand way Castle has dealt with the premiere invitation, Kate couldn't deny that the thought of attending brought with it a thrill of excitement. She had been a fan of Richard Castle's Derek Storm books long before she ever laid eyes on the man. In fact, her best kept secret was just how much of a fan of his books she really was. If Castle knew how much she loved his novels, she'd never hear the end of it. Especially if he knew how valuable they had been to her when she had needed escapism from the pain of losing her mother.

* * *

"Yo," Esposito greeted Beckett a few days before the 'Heat Wave' premiere. "Did Castle invite you to the movie?"

"The Nikki Heat movie?" To which Esposito nodded. "Invite isn't exactly the right word, but yes, I will be going."

"Is Castle taking you as his date?" Kevin Ryan asked, swinging around to his swivel chair to face his colleagues.

Whilst Kate shot a glare in his direction, Esposito quickly removed himself for the situation on the pretext of refilling his coffee.

"No, I'm not going as his date!" Kate protested, wondering why she was suddenly getting so riled up. It was a standing joke that Esposito and Ryan believed that Beckett and Castle were more than just partners. Perhaps Kate was so on edge because, deep down, she wished that Castle had invited her because he wanted her there, not because it was what his publishing company wanted.

Kate's desk phone began to ring, stopping her from possibly saying something she might later regret.

Sensing that the coast was clear, Esposito returned to his desk and looked across at Ryan.

"Definitely a date." They said in unison, but so as Kate would not hear them.

* * *

"So," Beckett began as she navigated through heavy traffic to get to the crime scene. The 'Heat Wave' premiere was just days away now. "Are you going to get me something to wear for the premiere or will I have to go shopping this weekend?"

Castle opened his mouth and rapidly closed it again. It hadn't crossed his mind; not this time. At the Nikki Heat book release, Castle had barely known Kate and his opinion of her and their relationship had been turned on its head since then.

"If that's what you want." He replied, his mind already putting plans in motion to find a dress for Kate pronto.

Kate shrugged one shoulder as she turned onto the block where the crime they were about to investigate had been committed.

"If you hadn't already made the assumption that I'd want to go with you, I'd be seeing it at the cinema like everyone else. And like everyone else, I'd been wearing jeans not a fancy frock."

Castle detected something in her tone, but couldn't quite place what it was.

"You mean you wouldn't want to go and hob nob with the stars?" He feigned shock.

Kate pulled the car into a space at the side of the road. "One 'star' is enough for me, thanks." She said, making air quotes around the word 'star'.

"Oh come on, this Nathan guy looks pretty hot to me." Castle protested. He was excited about the premiere, it was the first time one of his books was being memorialised on the silver screen. He thought that Kate would be more enthusiastic, especially as Nikki Heat was based on her.

"Do you have a little crush there, Castle?" Kate teased as they climbed out of the car.

Castle met her gaze over the car's roof. "Maybe."

* * *

After a few last minute calls to designer boutiques he frequented; the ones that sold women's couture too, Castle found a dress that he thought would be perfect for Kate. When he had picked out her dress for the book release, his motivations had been entirely different. She was more to him now that just another woman he could win over with his charm and his good looks. The fact that these facets of his personality did nothing to endear him to Kate had helped their working partnership immensely. If she had been any other woman, they probably would have slept together already. It wasn't that he didn't find Kate attractive; he was attracted to her personality at well as her looks, it was that she meant too much to him to screw up what they shared. He enjoyed working with her and the rest of the team as much as he loved his fiction writing, and he found he was constantly inspired to write new stories about them. Hopefully that meant he would be able to continue assisting them with their work for a long time to come.

Castle asked Alexis and, perhaps rather foolishly, his mother for their opinions on the dress he had picked for Kate to wear to the premiere. When he got their approval and some slightly inappropriate comments from his mother, he had the box sent to Beckett's apartment.

* * *

Beckett had just stepped out of the shower when she heard her apartment's intercom buzzing. Wrapping herself in a towel, Kate went to the door and accepted the package from the delivery guy. She took the box with her into the bedroom and, feeling a rush of excitement that was so unlike her, she pried the cardboard box open. She vaguely recognised the designer's name on the box; she knew enough that she never would have been able to afford such a luxury gown on her NYPD salary.

Clipping her damp hair up so it wouldn't drip on the dress, Kate unzipped the bodice and stepped into the dress. The satin clung to her figure in all the right places and, grateful that she was alone, Kate enacted a guilty twirl in front of her bedroom mirror.

The dress was perfect, and much more 'her' than the previous gown Castle had picked out for her.

Rather regretfully, Kate took the dress off and finished getting ready for bed. She hung the dress up on the outside of her closet, giving the soft fabric one last stroke before climbing into bed.

_Hope you enjoyed! Please review! xx_


	2. Part 2

**The Premiere**

_Wow, I was so surprised/honoured/humbled by the amount of reviews I received for the first chapter. It really made my morning to wake up to all your sweet reviews. I really didn't expect it, this being my first foray into Castle fanfiction. I've decided to make this into a three parter and I will thank you all properly at the start of the next and final installment. Hope you enjoy this part too and the rest will be posted shortly._

* * *

**Part 2:**

The day of the premiere was a slow one at the precinct, meaning that Castle was not needed to assist. Beckett, Esposito and Ryan spent the day completing paperwork that had been ignored in favour of high profile cases that had needed their immediate attention. Kate was grateful for the lull, knowing she would have to be up late for the premiere tonight.

Castle's publisher sent a limousine to pick Beckett up from her apartment. She climbed in carefully, making sure she didn't ruin the dress before she even arrived at the theatre. The driver cut across town to pick up the Castle family, and Kate felt a rush of adrenaline that had nothing to do with the champagne glass she was sipping from; she couldn't be sure if it was excitement, anxiety or a little of both.

Traffic was light as they crossed the city, rush hour having ended some time ago. Kate felt herself relaxing as the car pulled up outside Castle's apartment building. For a change she would be encroaching on his world, rather than the other way around. Although it was becoming difficult to remember what it was like at the precinct before he asked to become her partner.

The limousine door was opened by the driver and the three generations of the Castle family clambered inside. Kate moved aside to make more room for them, it was the size of their characters that made the limo seem smaller than it really was.

"You scrub up well, Beckett." Castle said, his grin so bright it almost glowed in the dimmed interior of the limo.

"Same goes for you." She replied, taking in his dapper penguin suit, complete with bow tie and gleaming cufflinks. They made eye contact for a few seconds, more passing between them unsaid than they were able to verbalise. The moment was shattered by Martha loudly exclaiming how wonderful the limousine looked, how fantastically Kate's dress suited her and whether the driver was married or not. Alexis rolled her eyes good naturedly behind her grandmother's back and took a seat next to Kate.

"You look really nice, Detective Beckett." She complimented, with as much sincerity as her father, but with a different motivation.

"Alexis, please call me Kate. I'm not on duty tonight, so I'm just 'Kate'."

"Or Nikki Heat." Martha interjected, once she had been firmly convinced by Richard that the driver had in fact been wearing a wedding ring.

"I'm not Nikki Heat, she's just _based _on me." She was quickly becoming bored of telling everyone this, but she put less passion into her protestations these days. It was harder to deny the similarities between herself and her fictional counterpart when she considered 'that' chapter of Heat Wave, and many times the scene had filled her dreams. She just hoped that Castle wouldn't catch her eye during the moments that Angelina Jolie and Nathan Fillion immortalised the scene on the silver screen.

* * *

Kate felt nervous again as the limousine pulled to a stop outside the theatre. She could see throngs of people on both sides of the street, waving banners and posters. This was completely unreal to her, but Castle took it all in his stride. Kate was pleased to see that he stopped to chat with his screaming fans and to sign their posters and copies of his novels. If Derek Storm had ever been turned into a movie franchise, she was sure that she would have been of the women here, hoping for a glimpse of her favourite author. Of course, this was something else she kept from Castle for her own peace of mind.

"Nikki, Nikki!" The crowd began to chorus as they placed the woman with Castle. They had already seen Martha and Alexis at other appearances, but Kate had only been to a few of Castle's functions and never anything this high profile.

Kate felt a blush rise to her cheek, she hadn't expected this. Castle was the hero of the night, not her. Still, the chanting didn't cease and, with a sigh, Kate scribbled something that looked like 'Nikki Heat' onto the posters and books of some of Castle's biggest fans. Her previous embarrassment faded a little, and she was beginning to appreciate the buzz Castle received from his work. To Kate it still didn't beat the feeling of putting a scumbag murderer or rapist in prison, for life.

"Come on, we need to take our seats." Castle hissed in her ear, but his voice was still barely audible over the screaming frenzy of fans. He didn't mention that fact that she had succumbed to her alter ego's identity but even if he had Kate doubted she would have been able to hear him.

It was much quieter inside the theatre, with the people from Castle's publisher's office and members of the studio who produced the movie being a lot more sedate than the devoted fan girls outside. The four of them had some of the best seats in the house and somehow, though she wasn't quite sure _how_ exactly, Kate and Castle ended up being seated next to each other. She wondered if it was Alexis' doing, but the teenager girl gave her such an innocent smile that even Kate's detective senses didn't tingle.

They still had fifteen minutes to go until the movie began, so Kate leaned over towards Castle.

"Are you excited to see this?" She asked. "I mean, it's the first time you'll actually be seeing something that you've actually written."

"I guess." Castle considered, bright blue eyes looking straight at Kate. "There were talks about turning the Derek Storm series into a television procedural, but I mean, how dull is _that_?"

Kate smirked. A lot of her colleagues thought it was odd that she chose reading crime novels as a means of relaxation. After a long, hard day in the office or out pounding the streets, many police officers and detectives wanted to escape from that world, perhaps with a romance novel or a comedy.

"Are _you_ looking forward to seeing it?" He asked, switching the focus back to her.

Kate's smirk grew wider. "Well, seeing as you invited me here under false pretences...yes, I am."

"I would have invited you anyway," Castle replied, pretending to make hurt puppy dog eyes at her. "I just wouldn't have spent half of your yearly pay cheque on a dress."

Kate elbowed him sharply in the ribs. "Was it worth it though?" She hadn't meant to ask it, nor had she meant to ask in the way she had. She was suddenly very thankful that it was dark enough in the theatre for the flush of her cheeks not to be too obvious.

"Every dime." Castle joked, and Kate found herself feeling disappointed. After having made her first attempt to seriously flirt with him, she had been hoping for a serious response. Maybe it was all a mistake, Castle had been working with her for long enough to have made a move on her, but yet he hadn't. She had assumed at the beginning to their partnership that it was due to her not exactly fitting with his type of woman, but then she had met Kyra and realised that she had judged Castle a little too harshly.

A waitress came by with a tray of champagne at that moment, and Kate was glad of the interruption.

"Ryan and Esposito said they were coming tonight, have you seen them?" Kate asked, once the silence between them became less than comfortable.

Castle didn't answer, but turned around in his seat, placing his hand on Kate's thigh for leverage.

"Castle!" She hissed, as members of the publisher's office made their way to where Kate and the Castle family were sitting. She recognised one of them from the Nikki Heat novel launch party.

Castle spun around quickly in his seat, removing his hand from Kate but not in time for his publisher's to notice. They said nothing, but the woman; the one Kate had recognised, simply arched a well manicured eyebrow. They all shook hands and exchanged pleasantries, including Martha and Alexis, and the publishers took their seats a few rows back. The theatre was really beginning to fill up now and the only people they were waiting for were the main stars of the movie.

The change in the atmosphere was almost palpable when the actors did arrive, Angelina Jolie and Nathan Fillion leading the way down the red carpet and into the seats in from of Kate and the Castles. Even Castle was star struck into silence, and he played poker with James Patterson on a regular basis; he was no stranger to famous people.

In the flesh, Kate was even more surprised at how much of a good likeness Nathan was for Castle.

"Do we get to meet the actors later?" Kate asked Castle, who busy checking out the leading man and lady.

He shrugged one shoulder, not taking his eyes off the actors. "I don't know, I've never been to anything like this."

Kate grinned. "You mean you've never been anywhere where you're not the most famous or most handsome people in the room, you shock me Castle."

Castle ignored the playful jibe. "Is it me or they sat a _little _too close together?" He asked instead.

"Are you crime novelist scenes tingling?" Kate wasn't seeing whatever it was that Castle was interpreting. "Maybe if they do have a thing going, Angelina'll let me have Brad."

That certainly got Castle's attention, he turned in his seat to face Kate. "You seriously like Brad Pitt?"

"I happen to think he's ruggedly handsome." Kate replied with a sparkle in her eyes.

Castle opened his mouth to reply but before he could speak, the lights went down and the movie began.

_Hope you enjoyed! Reviews are appreciated :) xx_


	3. Part 3

**The Premiere**

_Once again, thank you so much for all the reviews. I was honestly touched and completely blown away.  
Thank you to: **gayfortinafey, marie-scr, softer, Nathan fan, I'm Widget, CharlieBlue1977, SouthernWolfMyjic, AlexConrad, osulover, aero09, Jayce Gish, andy1990, foreverhopefuloflove, underarrest39, Foghorn-clj87, ClaireBearForEv, Eliza C., believesvueo, Beckett NYPD, Mariah94, nobody, castleelovee, WriterHorse32, Charmed225 and tiara733.**_

****

_Here goes the final installment. I'm not 100% sure about the ending, but I hope you like it. Definitely planning on writing more Castle fic in the future, and that's thanks to the support from you guys. :)_

* * *

**Part 3:**

Kate was completely engrossed by the movie; drawn in entirely by the plot and the developing storyline between the characters, even though she had read the book far more times than she would ever tell Castle. When she knew the 'scene' between Nikki and Rook was about to occur, Kate bit down on her lower lip but didn't dare look at Castle. She sensed rather than saw Castle shift slightly awkwardly in his seat, but her eyes were firmly fixed on the movie screen as if her life depended on it. In the loosest sense it did. If Castle found out the effect watching these scenes between Nikki and Rook was having on her, she'd never hear the end of it and she doubted it was something he would keep to himself.

Compared to Kate and Castle, Angelina and Nathan seemed unfazed as they watched their performances on the silver screen. Clearly to them it was just a job, but perhaps where Kate and Castle were concerned it was more than that?

The scene began to develop, the intimacy between the two characters Castle had created intensifying. Kate found that she knew almost every word the characters were going to say before they said them, realising that the production company had done very little to change the original story. She was glad of that, it pissed her off no end when film adaptations didn't live up to the original novel. Part of wished they had cut the sex scene though, not because it wasn't well played and filmed, but because it was just too weird watching it with Castle just centimetres away from her.

Kate finally braved looking across at Castle, who was still in his seat now. Although his eyes were also fixed on the screen, he had placed his hand over Alexis' eyes whilst Nikki and Rook did the deed (much to his daughter's muffled protestations that she was 16 not 6). Castle could sense Kate looking at him and turned towards her, one eye still on the screen , at least until he saw the look in Beckett's eyes. He hadn't imagined that, had he? Sometimes it was hard to tell what Kate was thinking; she teased him and pretended to flirt with him so often that it was difficult to tell if she was being genuine now. The semi-darkness of the theatre wasn't helping him out any either.

Kate gave him a small smile, before fixing her gaze back on the screen and re-immersing herself into the story, as the love scene played out a little more tastefully than the way Castle had written it.

* * *

When the movie finished people began to leave their seats and Kate saw Esposito, Ryan and Ryan's girlfriend had appeared at the end of their row.

"Yo," Esposito greeted, waving in the direction of Alexis and Martha.

"Great movie." Ryan grinned, holding Sarah's hand in his.

"I loved it." She added. "The actor who played Rook is dreamy." She smiled.

"Do you want to meet him?" Castle asked Sarah who almost squealed in response. Ryan looked less pleased though. "Beckett, you coming too?" He asked, calling back to her over his shoulder as he, his family, Ryan and his girlfriend made their way to meet Angelina, Nathan and the rest of the cast.

"No thanks Castle, I need to get home." It was already eleven o'clock at she'd have to be at the station early the next morning.

"Are you sure?" He asked, having stopped in his tracks now.

Kate fixed a grin to her face to convince him. "Yes, I'm sure. Some of us have real jobs to go to. Goodnight Castle, I had fun."

"I'll take her home." Esposito offered and Kate gratefully accepted, having arrived by limo and not wanting to take the subway home in her fancy dress, even though she did have her badge and gun into her small purse.

"Goodnight Kate, thanks for coming." Castle said, before being dragged away by Alexis.

Kate watched after him for a second, before turning and heading for the exit with Esposito. If Kate had suspected that Castle would rather have been with her than hobnobbing with the stars of the movie he had made possible, she would not have been very mistaken.

* * *

On their way out of the theatre, Kate was stopped by a man she hadn't met before but had seen with Castle's publishers earlier in the evening.

"I'll catch you up, Esposito." Kate told her co-worker when the publisher beckoned her over.

"Hi there," He greeted, shaking Kate's hand. "My name is Thomas Everett, I'm one of Rick's publisher's. We haven't met before, but I wanted to introduce myself to the woman who inspired Nikki Heat."

"Pleasure to meet you, Thomas." She replied. "It was very kind of you to invite me this evening, Castle was very insistent that I attended." She smiled.

Thomas looked a little surprised. "I'm sorry, I don't understand. It was Rick who requested that we booked a seat for you tonight. He said it was only right for you to be here, seeing as technically without you there wouldn't have been a Nikki Heat novel, let alone a movie."

Kate's thoughts were swirling more quickly than she could control them as she excused herself from Thomas' company and caught up with Esposito.

"Are you ready to go?" Esposito asked, knowing better to question Kate, who simply nodded and followed him towards his car.

Kate and Esposito talked about the movie as he navigated his way through the quiet New York streets towards Beckett's apartment. Esposito was careful with what he said, mainly pursuing topics such as how the book and movie compared, and how good he thought Angelina and Nathan had been in their respective roles. Kate was grateful for this, not wanting to talk about anything too connected to Castle. Her mind was still racing from what Thomas had told her.

When they arrived at Kate's apartment, she thanked him for the ride and they said goodnight. Once she was alone, Kate boiled some water to make a cup of tea but wasn't quite ready to take off the dress. Who knew when she would get another opportunity to wear it.

* * *

Kate made herself some tea and took it with her into the living room. Still wearing the dress, she took a seat on the couch and sipped. It had been a long day and she was tired, but she knew sleep was far away. Perhaps she was being ridiculous for obsessing over the white lie Castle had told but if he'd asked her nicely, there was no way she would have turned down the opportunity to go and see a film adaptation of one of her favourite author's books. Of course she never would have let Castle know this and maybe that was the problem. It was then that it hit her, maybe Castle was worried that she would have rejected the invitation; rejected him. He came across as confident on the side of arrogant, but the more that Kate had come to know him she had learned that this was a mask for the real Richard Castle.

Still puzzling over it all, Kate finished her tea and headed towards her bedroom to get ready for bed. She wasn't sure if she would be able to sleep, but at the very least she could get some rest. She had barely reached her bedroom door when she heard the intercom buzz, alerting her that she had company. Making sure her gun was nearby, Kate opened the door.

"Castle? What are you doing here?" She didn't even bother to hide her surprise, she had expected Castle to be out all night, partying with the stars and perhaps heading home with an attractive, young superfan of his.

"I felt bad that I was there 'hobnobbing with the stars' while Nikki Heat was getting a lift home with a cop." He grinned, holding out a bottle of wine to show how sorry he was.

"You don't have to feel bad about it Castle, it was my choice and without you I wouldn't even had been able to attend, let alone have a dress like this to wear." Castle's humility was confusing her no end.

"I lied." Castle said suddenly, then looked shocked as if he had had no control over the words. "My publisher didn't tell me I had to invite you, I wanted you to be there."

Kate smiled triumphantly. "I am a detective, Castle, not much gets passed me."

"A drink?" He asked, his face a little flushed.

"Castle, it's midnight and I was on my way to bed." She protested.

"In that dress?" He asked, cocking an eyebrow. In the full light of Kate's apartment, it suited her even more. The dress was the same shade as Beckett's favourite brown leather jacket, corseted at the bodice and flowing into a narrow silky skirt.

Kate rolled her eyes at him. "Thank you for wine and thank you for stopping by, but I'm tired and I want to go to bed."

Castle didn't leave though, still not taking the hint. He seemed to have something to say but he didn't seem to be able to find the words, perhaps he should have written it down instead.

"I asked you to the premiere tonight because I wanted you to be there." He began, lamely repeating what he had already said.

"Yes, Castle I know..."

"Not because you're the inspiration for Nikki Heat, definitely not because my publisher told me to invite you and not because I felt I owed it to you for having to put up with me day in day out." He paused, knowing he could still back out and claim his unusual behaviour on the champagne he had consumed, but in truth he had never felt more sober. "I invited you because I wanted to spend the evening with you, away from work and I thought inviting you to the premiere on false pretences was the only way to get you to say yes."

"Rick, Richard..." Kate began, trying out his name and how it felt coming from her lips. "You don't have to con me into spending time with you."

"I don't?..." Castle looked surprised and confused in equal measures, making Kate realise that although Castle was good at reading people, his abilities were far from perfect. He took a breath and seemed to gain confidence, becoming his usual self again. "So, if I was to ask you out...perhaps for dinner and a movie, you wouldn't say 'no'?"

"No." Kate replied, a smile tugging at her lips no matter how hard she fought it. If she lied to Castle now and said she wasn't interested, she was aware that she would lose her chance. She had seen more sides to Castle in the last year than she could ever have imagined, and she suddenly wanted to know everything about who he really was.

Castle looked confused. "You mean you'd say 'no', or that 'no, you wouldn't say no'."

The puzzled expression on Castle's face was definitely adorable, and Kate couldn't help but laugh at him. "I wouldn't say no, Rick, not if you asked me properly."

His face broke into a grin again. "Kate Beckett, could I request the pleasure of your company on Saturday to have dinner and see a movie with me?"

Kate took a breath, knowing that her positive response would change everything between them and possibly everything about her life, but she was willing to take that chance. Richard Castle had become part of her life, as had Martha and Alexis, and she wanted to become a part of their lives too; part of their family.

"Yes, I'd like that." She said finally, with a smile.

Castle beamed. "I'll see you on Saturday then."

"Unless someone gets murdered first."

"Unless someone gets murdered first." He echoed, brushing a kiss against her cheek before he left her apartment.

Kate was grinning softly as she closed the door after him, and the grin didn't leave till long after she had undressed and crawled into bed.


End file.
